Contents:
Part One Theoretical Developments in the Gender-Technology Relationship: Feminist Sociology and Methodology: Leaky Black Boxes in Gender/Technology Relations; On Some Failures of Nerve in Constructivist and Feminist Analyses of Technology. Part Two Case Studies of the Gender- Technology Relation: Gender is Calling: Some Reflections of Past, Present and Future Uses of the Telephone; The Configuration of Domestic Practices in the Designing of Household Appliances; New Reproductive Technologies and "the Modern Condition" in South East England; Networking Constructions of Gender and Constructing Gender Networks: Considering Definitions of Woman in the British Cervical Screening Programme; Competition and Collaboration in the Male Shaping of Computing; Negotiating A Software Career: Informal Work Practices And "The Lads" In a Software Installation.

Contents:
Part One Theoretical Developments in the Gender-Technology Relationship: Feminist Sociology and Methodology: Leaky Black Boxes in Gender/Technology Relations; On Some Failures of Nerve in Constructivist and Feminist Analyses of Technology. Part Two Case Studies of the Gender- Technology Relation: Gender is Calling: Some Reflections of Past, Present and Future Uses of the Telephone; The Configuration of Domestic Practices in the Designing of Household Appliances; New Reproductive Technologies and "the Modern Condition" in South East England; Networking Constructions of Gender and Constructing Gender Networks: Considering Definitions of Woman in the British Cervical Screening Programme; Competition and Collaboration in the Male Shaping of Computing; Negotiating A Software Career: Informal Work Practices And "The Lads" In a Software Installation.

Leadership: Limits and Possibilities offers a critical discussion of leadership that draws upon a wide range of approaches, material and examples to demonstrate the complex and challenging role of leadership and through this debate suggests possible ways to improve as a leader. It is structured around 5 key aspects of leadership: person, product, position, process and purpose, providing a useful organizing framework. It combines theoretical discussions with lively examples to bring the subject alive.

The subject of leadership raises many questions: What is it? How does it differ from management and command? Are leaders born or bred? Who are the leaders? Do we actually need leaders? Inevitably, the answers are provocative and partial; leadership is a hugely important topic of debate. There are constant calls for 'greater' or 'stronger' leadership, but what this actually means, how we can evaluate it, and why it's important are not very clear. In this Very Short Introduction Keith Grint prompts the reader to rethink their understanding of what leadership is. He examines the way leadership has evolved from its earliest manifestations in ancient societies, highlighting the beginnings of leadership writings through Plato, Sun Tzu, Machiavelli and others, to consider the role of the social, economic, and political context undermining particular modes of leadership. Exploring the idea that leaders cannot exist without followers, and recognising that we all have diverse experiences and assumptions of leadership, Grint looks at the practice of management, its history, future, and influence on all aspects of society. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Leadership: Limits and Possibilities offers a critical discussion of leadership that draws upon a wide range of approaches, material and examples to demonstrate the complex and challenging role of leadership and through this debate suggests possible ways to improve as a leader. It is structured around 5 key aspects of leadership: person, product, position, process and purpose, providing a useful organizing framework. It combines theoretical discussions with lively examples to bring the subject alive.

This highly topical book is a concise and accessible account of the relationship between technology and work. Firstly, it reviews and critically assesses a variety of recent approaches to the social and cultural dimensions of technology. Secondly, it examines the implications of these new approaches for existing ideas about the nature of technology and work organization.

At the core of much thinking about technology is the assumption that the technical character and capacity of artefacts is given. The enduring image of "deus ex machina" captures the idea that it is the essential capacity 'within' a technology which, in the end, accounts for the way we organize ourselves, our work and other life experiences. Recent work in the sociology of technology, by contrast, sets out relativist and constructivist accounts of technology, which begin to challenge this central assumption.

"The Machine at Work "includes a reinterpretation of the Luddites; a review of the social processes of development in information technology; a reassessment of theories of the role of technology in work; and an analysis of the common limitations of some constructivist and feminist perspectives on technology. The book argues that only a commitment to a particular conception of constructivism enables the kind of radical rethinking about technology and work relations that is needed.

This engaging and informative text will be of interest to students in a range of subject areas - from sociology, organizational theory and behaviour, to industrial relations, management and business studies.

Leadership pervades every aspect of organizational and social life, and its study has never been more diverse, nor more fertile. With contributions from those who have defined that territory, this volume is not only a key point of reference for researchers, students and practitioners, but also an agenda-setting prospective and retrospective look at the state of leadership in the twenty-first century. It evaluates the domain and stretches it further by considering leadership scholarship from every angle, concluding with an optimistic look at the future of leaders, followers and their place in organizations and society at large. Each section represents a distinctive slant on leadership: - Macro perspectives - including strategic leadership, organization theory, charismatic leadership, complexity leadership, and networks. - Political and philosophical perspectives - including distributed leadership, critical leadership, ethics, the military and cults. - Psychological perspectives - including personality, leadership style and contingency theories, transformational leadership, exchange relationships, shared leadership, cognition, leadership development, gender, trust, identity and the 'dark side' of leadership. - Cultural perspectives - including spirituality, aesthetics, and creativity. - Contemporary and emergent perspectives - followership, historical methods, virtual leadership, emotions, image, celebrity, and the quest for a general theory of leadership

Are leaders born or made? Do they have particular traits or are we all potential leaders? Keith Grint examines the notion of leadership as an array of 'arts' in a series of rich essay portraits of some of the most famous, and infamous, leaders (for example Florence Nightingale, Richard Branson, Henry Ford, Horatio Nelson, Adolf Hitler, and Martin Luther King). With scenarios drawn from across the spectrum to include business, politics, society, and the military, this book will be of interest to anyone curious about the nature and function of leadership.

Are leaders born or made? Do they have particular traits or are we all potential leaders? Keith Grint examines the notion of leadership as an array of 'arts' in a series of rich essay portraits of some of the most famous, and infamous, leaders (for example Florence Nightingale, Richard Branson, Henry Ford, Horatio Nelson, Adolf Hitler, and Martin Luther King). With scenarios drawn from across the spectrum to include business, politics, society, and the military, this book will be of interest to anyone curious about the nature and function of leadership.

This book is designed to provide an accessible collection of traditional and contemporary articles on leadership to postgraduate students of management, many of whom will be MBAs. Is also of great value to senior managers taking executive programmes in leadership. It gives the reader a good, authoritative overview from different perspectives on the critical issues of leadership.

What is leadership? Are leaders made or born? Are the characteristics and challenges of leadership the same across time and cultures? Do leaders 'pull' or are they 'pushed'? Are leaders driven by needs that may be dysfunctional to the organizations they lead? Do women leaders behave differently from men? Should we look for models of business and organizational leadership in military organizations? These are all just some of the questions posed in this Reader which includes key statements from classical philosophy (Plato, Sun Tzu, Machiavelli) through to modern management writers (Barnard, Kets de Vries, Fiedler, Rosener). The collection will be invaluable to students and managers taking a range of courses in business management and leadership training. In his Introduction, Keith Grint both surveys current thinking on leadership and provides an excellent road map' of the readings which are grouped under five headings: Classical, Traditional, Modern, Mythical, and Alternative. This book is intended for management and students at undergraduate and graduate level managers in executive training programmes